Connected: An Internet Encyclopedia
RFC 791 - IP Header Option: Loose Source and Record Route

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### RFC 791 - IP Header Option: Loose Source and Record Route

            +--------+--------+--------+---------//--------+
            |10000011| length | pointer|     route data    |
            +--------+--------+--------+---------//--------+
             Type=131

The loose source and record route (LSRR) option provides a means for the source of an internet datagram to supply routing information to be used by the gateways in forwarding the datagram to the destination, and to record the route information.

The option begins with the option type code. The second octet is the option length which includes the option type code and the length octet, the pointer octet, and length-3 octets of route data. The third octet is the pointer into the route data indicating the octet which begins the next source address to be processed. The pointer is relative to this option, and the smallest legal value for the pointer is 4.

A route data is composed of a series of internet addresses. Each internet address is 32 bits or 4 octets. If the pointer is greater than the length, the source route is empty (and the recorded route full) and the routing is to be based on the destination address field. If the address in destination address field has been reached and the pointer is not greater than the length, the next address in the source route replaces the address in the destination address field, and the recorded route address replaces the source address just used, and pointer is increased by four.

The recorded route address is the internet module's own internet address as known in the environment into which this datagram is being forwarded.

This procedure of replacing the source route with the recorded route (though it is in the reverse of the order it must be in to be used as a source route) means the option (and the IP header as a whole) remains a constant length as the datagram progresses through the internet.

This option is a loose source route because the gateway or host IP is allowed to use any route of any number of other intermediate gateways to reach the next address in the route.

Must be copied on fragmentation. Appears at most once in a datagram.

Next: RFC 791 - IP Header Option: Strict Source and Record Route

Connected: An Internet Encyclopedia
RFC 791 - IP Header Option: Loose Source and Record Route